The Great Chase
by forestofmyown
Summary: Leaf thinks about her beginnings, her reasons for continuing to race after his shadow, and comes upon a rather comforting conclusion. LeafXRed
1. Chapter 1

...I had intended this to be longer, but...it just seemed to end so well right there.

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING, NOTHING I tell you!**

* * *

Leaf was afraid of a lot of things. Her Pokemon getting badly injured, for one. Spiders (doesn't everyone hate spiders, though?). The dark. Typical things.

But the thing she feared the most was that she'd always be chasing him – and never catch up.

When Red and Blue set out on their Pokemon adventures, she had been envious. Younger than them, she could only watch them go. She'd been proud – she would always be proud – but it hadn't taken long for the loneliness to set in.

The TV had been her only comfort. _"Rookie trainers on the rise! Gym leaders defeated one after the other!"_ The headlines always seemed to be like that, talking about Blue, and then Red, right on his heels. Blue was the famous Pokemon Professor's grandson, a cocky prodigy. Red was his rival, silent and wise.

She set out on her own adventure not long after Red earned his fifth badge. Then it was Pokemon Center to Pokemon Center, watching the news to hear of his exploits. As fast as she could, Leaf gave chase.

She trained hard, at first harder than she should have. Blinded by her mission, she hurt her Pokemon. When that realization really hit home, when she carried her bruised and beaten Ivysaur into a Pokemon Center in the dead of night, she made a promise to herself to never let it happen again. And, despite making the large gap between herself and Red even larger, she took a timeout from Gym battles and harsh hikes to spend real time with her Pokemon.

It was probably the best decision she ever made.

Their bond strengthened beyond anything she had known before, her Pokemon fought for her with a fervor that stemmed from love and devotion. Her adventure renewed, now she was the one on the news, fighting to catch up to the one who mattered most to her.

When Blue made it to the top, Red used him as a stepping stone.

Blue had been her friend. He probably would never admit it, and she was surprised that she even thought of him that way, but she knew it was true. They'd all grown up together, after all, and being a pompous and superior brat was the only way Blue knew how to express himself. She was sorry to see him finally achieve his dream, and then fall so swiftly. What a blow it must have been to him. She only hoped that it was a humbling one.

But now Red was more than just the boy she was chasing – he was the Champion, the one every trainer in Kanto was chasing. She felt bogged down and discouraged, facing hoards of trainers who dreamed not of Red himself, but of what he held, what he represented.

And it was that thought that made her realize she was different. She wasn't chasing after some title, a position, or glory.

She was chasing after a friend.

She was, maybe, even chasing after love.

And she wouldn't stop till she caught him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I wonder if these things would be more interesting in a foreign language? 私が所有していないと、この物語、それが参考にした知的財産のお金をオフ作っていないです。 Oh! It is~**

**By popular demand, a continuation. And there will be yet another after this. Again, I apologize for the extremely short chapter - this is more of a drabble series than anything (and it wasn't meant to be a series at all, so :p). I'll get around to part three eventually (probably not soon) but here's this, hope you enjoy.  
**

* * *

The chase was still on, but it was, finally, drawing to a close – or so Leaf hoped.

Because now it was the final test to see if she was ready. To see if all that work, all that training and running and dreaming had been enough. Leaf was standing at the entrance to the Indigo Plateou.

She was about to take on the Elite Four.

And Red was at the top.

As she battled, one by one, the strongest trainers in all of Kanto, she felt like she was in a daze. These tests of her and her Pokemon's bonds should have been the foremost thought in her mind, should have been a memory forever impressed on her soul with it's importance to her future. But it was all hazy, like a dream. She fought through a fog, taking down the Elite Four one by one without feeling the least bit of fear or pride.

Her mind was always on the room ahead, taking that next step, being _so _close...

Until, finally, those big double doors opened and she walked that long hallway to the Champion's platform.

He was standing there, waiting.

Leaf saw him, looking for all the world just like the boy in the Pokemon cap she'd grown up with and not at all like he'd been as far away from her as he had. He wasn't smiling – Red saved his smiles, he made each one special – and anyone who didn't know him would think he was bored.

But he was looking at her, right at her, for the first time in so long that Leaf felt like she could die right there, at his feet, and she would have been happy. When she had started this journey, she definitely would have. Yet now...

Now, she felt this driving urge for more. She'd worked so hard, and following in his shadow, chasing after him like a lost puppy, just wasn't enough anymore. She hadn't come all this way just to see his face.

Leaf had traveled from Pallet Town to Viridian City, through Viridian Forest to Pewter City. Hiked across Mt. Moon to Cerulean City, traveled to Saffron, Vermilion, Celadon. Through the Rock Tunnel to Lavender Town, through the Diglett's Cave, to Fuchsia City, and down the Cycling Road. She'd swam through the Seafoam Islands, been to Cinnabar, came back home and challenged Victory Road to reach the Indigo Plateau, the Pokemon League Headquarters.

She was one battle away from being the Pokemon League Champion. She wasn't little Leaf, childhood friend, anymore. She was on his level, his equal.

She'd come this far, not for fame, not for glory, not for fun, a challenge, or some title that meant nothing to her.

Leaf had come all this way for Red.

She was sick of waiting.


End file.
